Hyderabad: Man arrested for altering Aadhaar, PAN card details for money

Shamshabad Task Force and local police arrested a 36-year-old man in Pahadishareef for allegedly forging Aadhaar and PAN cards. Police seized 60 fake or altered Aadhaar cards, two PAN cards, cash and equipment used in the racket

Hyderabad: The Task Force (Shamshabad), along with the local police, arrested a man for allegedly forging Aadhaar and PAN cards by altering photographs, dates of birth, names and other personal details in Pahadishareef on Thursday.

The suspect was identified as Ch. Mahadev (36), a resident of Sriram Colony in Jalpally, who runs a photocopy shop in Budvel.

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According to police, Mahadev, who studied up to Class VII, realised that his earnings were insufficient to support his family and turned to document forgery to make easy money. He reportedly installed software that enabled him to modify personal details, including names, photographs, dates of birth and addresses, on Aadhaar and PAN cards.

He allegedly operated the illegal business from his residence. Police said he charged Rs 300 for changing the date of birth on an Aadhaar card and between Rs 700 and Rs 1,000 for altering all the details.

Officials suspect that customers used the forged documents to secure private jobs in factories around Hyderabad, obtain mobile phone SIM cards and avail themselves of various government welfare schemes.

Following a tip-off, the Task Force apprehended Mahadev and seized forged documents and equipment. Police recovered 60 fake or altered Aadhaar cards, two PAN cards, Rs 5,000 in cash, a laptop, a printer, a lamination machine and a mobile phone from him.